Insulator and support for electrically charged fence wires

ABSTRACT

A reusable insulator and support for attaching electrically charged fence wire to fence posts or rods comprises a flexible, strip-form member composed of a dielectric material. The support member has a portion deflectable into a configuration for encircling the fence wire and is attachable to the fence post in a manner to support the fence wire on the post.

United States Patent Oltmanns [54] INSULATOR AND SUPPORT FOR ELECTRICALLY CHARGED FENCE WIRES [72] Inventor: George F. Oltmanns, 2528 Pensacola Ave., Chicago, 111. 60618 [22] Filed: Feb. 24, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 118,406

521 u.s.c1. ..256/l0,256/47,l74/l58F 51 Int.Cl. ..A0lk3/00 581 Field ofSearch.....256/10, 1,47,48; 174/158 F,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,568,980 3/1971 Hulburt....' ..256/10 1451 Aug. 15, 1972 2,350,290 5/1944 Moore ..256/10 2,805,277 9/1957 Moeller ..256/10 X 2,931,853 4/1960 Wilson ..l74/l58 F 3,531,090 9/ l 970 Laible ..256/ l 0 Primary Examiner-Dennis L. Taylor Att0rneyl-lill, Sherman, Meroni, Gross & Simpson 57 ABSTRACT A reusable insulator and support for attaching electrically charged fence wire to fence posts or rods comprises a flexible, strip-form member composed of a dielectric material. The support member has a portion deflectable into a configuration for encircling the fence wire and is attachable to the fence post in a manner to support the fence wire on the post.

7 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PATENTEDMJB 1 Im 3.684.247

INVENTOR. 60R6 F 04 7444mm:

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention The present invention generally relates to a support and insulator device for fence wire, and more particularly to a reusable, flexible, strip-form member for supporting electrically charged fence wire on a fence post in a spaced, electrically insulated relationship.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Electrified fences are oftentimes utilized for temporary fence enclosures, and thus, the present invention provides a reusable insulator and support for quickly attaching electrically conductive fence wire to fence posts of any one of the common configurations, such as wooden posts, T-posts, small diametered rods and the like.

The insulator and support of the present invention generally comprises a flexible, strip-form member having a portion deflectable into a configuration for encircling and supporting an adjoining fence wire and another portion attachable to the fence post in a manner to maintain the wire-supporting portion in its deflected condition.

In one form of the present invention, the flexible, strip-form member has an elongated body portion of a certain width and a tail portion having a lesser width and forming a pair of oppositely extending shoulders at the juncture between the body portion and the tail portion. The support member of that form of the invention is deflected or folded into a loop encircling the fence wire and with the tail portion passed through an appropriately positioned and sized slot in the body of the member. In order to enable convenient attachment of the member to a fence post of the rod type, the tail por tion of the member is formed into a loop and laced through another slot in the body portion. A pair of Iongitudinally spaced-apart apertures in the tail portion, one adjacent the pair of shoulders and another adjacent a terminal end of the tail portion, are sized to snugly fit over a standard sized fence rod with the rod intersecting the loop formed by the tail in a manner to retain the flexible support member in its looped or deflected condition. In that manner, a reusable support and insulator for attaching electrically conductive fence wire to standard fence rods is provided by the present invention.

It is also contemplated by the present invention to provide other forms of flexible support members which are particularly adapted to be nailed to a wooden fence post or attached by wire to other forms of fence posts, such as the T-shaped fence post. Those alternative embodiments generally comprise a flexible portion configured to be deflected into a wire-encircling configuration and are characterized by apertures formed in the deflected portion and a body portion appropriately disposed thereon to be in alignment when the deflected portion is folded or deflected into the supporting configuration. Thus, attachment means, such as nails or wire, are passed through the aligned apertures and attached to the fence post, thereby maintaining the flexible support member in its deflected, wire-supporting position and attaching the support member to the fence post for supporting the fence wire thereon in a spaced, electrically insulated relationship.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a reusable, flexible, strip-form member configured and arranged to be deflected into a wire-supporting configuration and attached to an adjoining fence post in a manner to retain the support member in the deflected position for supporting an electrically conductive fence wire in an insulated relationship on the fence post.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an isometric view illustrating a support and insulator, embodying the features of the present invention, as applied to a device adapted for use with a rodtype fence post;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a strip-form blank utilized in forming the insulator and support shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of an alternative embodiment of the present invention and illustrates a support and insulator embodying the features of the present invention and attached to a wooden fence post;

FIG. 4 is a plan view of the blank utilized to form the insulator device shown in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of still another embodiment of the present invention and illustrates an insulator and support device attached to a wooden fence post;

FIG. 6 is a rear plan view, taken substantially as shown by line VI-VI of FIG. 5, and illustrates the assembled support device of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a plan view of a blank utilized to form the insulator and support device illustrated in FIGS. 5 and 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the drawings, and first particularly referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, inclusive, a device of the present invention for insulating and supporting an electrically conductive fence wire 10 on a fence post 11 comprises a substantially strip-form, flexible member or bland l2 sized and configured to form a portion deflectable into a wire-encircling configuration and another portion including means for attaching the strip-form member to the fence post. The member or blank 12 may be molded, or otherwise formed, from polypropylene, polyethylene, or other suitable dielectric material which is flexible over a relatively wide temperature range to permit utilization of the device in all types of climates. Also, if desired the strip-form blank or member 12 may be manufactured and marketed as a series of interconnected, endwise disposed members which may then be cut or separated by the ultimate user, as required.

In accordance with the principles of a first embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in FIG. 1 and 2, the flexible insulating and supporting member 12, for use with the rod-type fence post 11, has a body portion 13 of a certain width and a tail portion 14 extending longitudinally of the body portion 13 and having a lesser width, thereby forming a pair of shoulders 16, 16. The shoulders 16, 16 extend transversely in opposite directions at the juncture of the tail portion 14 with the body 13. The insulating and supporting device is produced and sold as a strip-form blank, as illustrated in FIG. 2, and is applied to the fence post 11 by an ultimate user. In use, the portion of the body adjacent the shoulders 16, 16 is formed into a wire-supporting loop encircling the adjoining fence wire 16. The wire-supporting loop 17 is formed by passing the tail portion 14 through an appropriately sized slot 18 formed in the body 13 and spaced longitudinally from the shoulders 16, 16 by a distance selected to form a conveniently sized loop when the tail 14 is fully pulled through the slot 16 so that the shoulders abut the body 13 on opposite sides of the slot.

Means for attaching the support member 12 to the fence rod 11 and for maintaining the deflected or looped portion of the body 13, defined between the shoulder 16 and the slot 13 in the wire-supporting loop 17 comprise an aperture 19 formed in the tail 14. The aperture 13 has a circular configuration and a size less than the outer diameter of the fence rod so that the fence rod snugly fits into the circular aperture. Also, a center of the circular aperture 19 is spaced from the shoulders 16, 16 by a distance approximately equal to the sum of a radius of the fence rod plus the thickness of the strip-form member 12. In that manner, with the rod 11 inserted in the aperture 19, the shoulders 16, 16 cooperate with the rod to retain the member 12 in its deflected configuration for forming the wire-supporting loop 17.

lt is also contemplated by the present invention to provide means for limiting movement of the member 12 downwardly along the fence rod 11. Thus, the attachment means further comprise a second slot 21 formed in the body portion 13 and spaced from the first slot !16 on a side thereof opposite the tail portion 14. The tail 14 has a sufficient length to be looped over an upper end 22 of the fence rod 11 and passed through the slot 21. To retain the tail portion 14 in the looped configuration, a second aperture 23 is formed therein adjacent the terminal end 24 and has a size to snugly fit over the rod 11. When assembled, as illustrated in FIG. 1, with the aperture 23 beyond the slot 21 and fitted over the rod 11, the terminal end 24 of the tail 14 is restrained from being pulled through the slot 21.

Additional support and rigidity for the insulator and support member 12 is provided by forming an aperture 26 in the body 13 adjacent the slot 21 so that the terminal end portion 27 of the body may be snugly engaged on the rod 11. Also, if desired, a third slot 28 may be formed in the body 13 adjacent the terminal end 27 and spaced outwardly of the second slot 21. When assembling the insulating and supporting device 12, the tail 14 is passed through the third slot 28 prior to being threaded through the second slot 21, thereby anchoring the terminal end portion 27 of the body to the looped tail portion 14 and providing additional support for the tail portion.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, a second embodiment of the present invention contemplates providing a flexible, strip-form support member 31 composed of a flexible, dielectric material and having a constant width. The insulating and supporting member 31 comprises a flexible portion 32 deflected into a wire-encircling loop 33, when assembled. Formed at either end portion of the deflected, loop forming portion 32 of the member 31 is a series of transversely spaced apertures, including the apertures 34 at one end and the apertures 36 at the other end. As illustrated in FIG. 4, each of the series of transversely spaced apertures 34 or 36 has three apertures which are in longitudinal alignment with three apertures of the opposite series of apertures. Thus, when the deflected portion 32 is folded about a substantially transversely extending axis the first series of apertures 32 will be in alignment with the second series of apertures 36.

Attachment means for attaching the insulating and supporting member 31 to a wooden post 37, as shown in FIG. 3, may include one or more nails as at 38 passing through aligned ones of the apertures 34 and 36 and engaged into the wooden post 37, thereby to attach the member 31 to the post for supporting the adjoining fence wire 11 on the post in a spaced and electrically insulated relationship. Also, if desired, a wire may be threaded through aligned ones of the apertures 34 and 36 and wrapped around a fence post in a manner to attach the support 31 to the post.

It is also contemplated by the present invention to form the support member 31 with a portion configured to form a rain cap for diverting rain water running down the fence post 37 away from the wire-supporting loop 33. Accordingly, the member 31 includes another flexible portion 39 formed as an extension of the portion 32 and folded to overlap the terminal end portion 41, which has the apertures 34 formed therein. To retain the rain cap 39 in the folded configuration, a third series of apertures 42 are formed in an end of the strip opposite the end containing the apertures 34 and the third series of apertures are in longitudinal alignment with the apertures 34 and 36 and disposed to be aligned therewith when assembled. A Accordingly, the attachment means, such as the nail 34 will pass through aligned ones of the apertures 42, 36 and 34, thereby to maintain the member 31 in its assembled relationship when attached to the fence post 37.

A third embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in FIGS. 5 through 7, inclusive, contemplates providing a strip-form, flexible supporting and insulating member 51 including a pair of flexible tabs 52, 52 configured to be deflected or folded into a configuration forming a wire-encircling loop or slot 55 and being retained in that configuration by appropriated attachment means. The insulating and supporting member 51 has a pair of parallel, spaced-apart slots 53, 53 opening at one side edge 54 and terminating inwardly of an opposite or bottom side edge 56, thereby to divide the supporting member into a central or medial body portion 57 flanked by the pair of deflectable, loop forming tabs 52, 52.

ln use, each of the tabs 52, 52 is folded about an axis extending substantially colinearly of the associated slot 53 and to a position partially overlapping the central body portion 57. In that manner, the deflectable tabs 52 cooperate with the central body portion 57 to define a wire-encircling loop or slot for receiving the wire 11 and restraining the same against displacement. If desired, the inner end portion of each of the slots 53 may include an enlarged cutout 59 sized to form a pocket or recess for receiving the wire 11 when the tabs are inwardly folded in their assembled relationship.

In order to retain the tabs 52 in their deflected, assembled relationship each of the tabs have at least one aperture 61 formed therein and disposed thereon to be in alignment with associated ones of a pair of spacedapart apertures 62 formed in the central body portion 57 of the member 51. Thus, as shown in FIG. 5, attachment means for securing the member 51 to a fence post, such as the wooden fence post 63 may include a pair of nails as at 64 which pass through aligned ones of the apertures 61 and 62 and engage into the fence post. If desired, the attachment means may include a wire loop threaded through the aligned apertures 61 and 62 and then wrapped and fastened around a fence post, such as a T-shaped post. Also, the body portion 57 of the member 51 may include a third aperture 66 disposed midway between the pair of apertures 64 for receiving an additional nail or similar attachment means.

Referring again to FIGS. 3 and 4, if desired, the support member 31 may also include a pair of apertures 40, 40 disposed on longitudinally opposite sides of a center of the deflected portion 32. The apertures 40 permit drainage of water from the wire encircling loop 33 and may receive a wire 45 for securing the fence wire 1 1 to the support device.

From the foregoing description, it should be noted that the present invention contemplates providing a flexible, strip-form device for supporting an electrically charged fence wire on an adjoining fence post in a spaced and electrically insulated relationship. Each of the embodiments of the present invention provides an insulating supporting member comprising a flexible portion which is deflected into a wire-encircling loop and retained in that configuration by attachment of the support member to the associated fence post.

Although those versed in the art may suggest various minor modifications, it should be understood that I wish to embody within the scope of the patent warranted hereon all such modifications as reasonably and properly come within the scope of my contribution to the art.

I claim as my invention:

1. A device for supporting fence wire on a fence post means in a spaced and electrically insulated relationship comprising a flexible strip form dielectric member having an elongated body portion and an elongated tail portion, said elongated tail portion having a transverse width less than that of said body and forming a pair of transversely extending shoulders disposed on opposite sides of said tail portion at the juncture thereof with said body portion, said body portion having a first slot formed therein, said first slot being sized to receive said tail portion therethrough and being spaced from said shoulders, said shoulders abutting said body portion at said first slot when said body portion is deflected into a loop encircling an adjoining fence wire with said tail passing through said first slot; and the remainder of said body portion and tail portion being interconnected to form an attachment means attaching said member to an associated fence post means and retaining said body t he uncture here wi s 'd bod rtio said body pc'irtion having a irst s ot f rmed ti ie in, sized to receive said tail portion and being spaced from said shoulders, said body portion being deflected into loop encircling an adjoining fence wire with said tail passing through said first slot and means attaching said member to and associated fence post and retaining said body portion in its deflected configuration, said attachment means including an aperture formed in said tail portion and sized to snugly receive a fence rod for attaching said member to the rod.

3. A support device as defined in claim 2 and further characterized by said first aperture formed in said tail portion being circular and having a center thereof spaced from said shoulders by a distance substantially equal to the sum of the radius of the associated rodtype fence post plus the thickness of said flexible member.

4. A support device as defined in claim 1 and further characterized by said attachment means including said body having a second slot formed therein and spaced from said first slot on a side thereof opposite said tail portion, said tail portion being deflected into a loop and having a terminal end portion passing through said second slot, said tail portion having an aperture formed in the terminal end portion thereof and sized to snugly receive an associated fence rod in a manner to retain said tail portion in the deflected, looped configuration.

5. A support device as defined in claim 4 and further characterized by said tail portion passing over and abutting an upper end of an associated fence rod, thereby to limit movement of said member downwardly along the associated fence rod.

6. A support device as defined in claim 4 and further characterized by said body portion having a third slot formed therein and spaced outwardly of said second slot, said tail portion passing through said third slot before being passed through said second slot, and said body portion having an aperture disposed between said first and said second slots and sized to snugly receive a fence rod.

7. A support device as defined in claim 4 and further characterized by said shoulders abutting the body portion on either side of said first slot when said body portion is deflected into a loop encircling an adjoining fence wire. 

1. A device for supporting fence wIre on a fence post means in a spaced and electrically insulated relationship comprising a flexible strip form dielectric member having an elongated body portion and an elongated tail portion, said elongated tail portion having a transverse width less than that of said body and forming a pair of transversely extending shoulders disposed on opposite sides of said tail portion at the juncture thereof with said body portion, said body portion having a first slot formed therein, said first slot being sized to receive said tail portion therethrough and being spaced from said shoulders, said shoulders abutting said body portion at said first slot when said body portion is deflected into a loop encircling an adjoining fence wire with said tail passing through said first slot; and the remainder of said body portion and tail portion being interconnected to form an attachment means attaching said member to an associated fence post means and retaining said body portion in its deflected configuration.
 2. A support device for supporting fence wire on a fence post or rod in a spaced and electrically insulated relationship, the device comprising a flexible strip-form member composed of a dielectric material and including an elongated body portion and an elongated tail portion having a transverse width less than that of said body and forming a pair of transversely extending shoulders disposed on opposite sides of said tail portion at the juncture thereof with said body portion, said body portion having a first slot formed therein, sized to receive said tail portion and being spaced from said shoulders, said body portion being deflected into loop encircling an adjoining fence wire with said tail passing through said first slot and means attaching said member to and associated fence post and retaining said body portion in its deflected configuration, said attachment means including an aperture formed in said tail portion and sized to snugly receive a fence rod for attaching said member to the rod.
 3. A support device as defined in claim 2 and further characterized by said first aperture formed in said tail portion being circular and having a center thereof spaced from said shoulders by a distance substantially equal to the sum of the radius of the associated rod-type fence post plus the thickness of said flexible member.
 4. A support device as defined in claim 1 and further characterized by said attachment means including said body having a second slot formed therein and spaced from said first slot on a side thereof opposite said tail portion, said tail portion being deflected into a loop and having a terminal end portion passing through said second slot, said tail portion having an aperture formed in the terminal end portion thereof and sized to snugly receive an associated fence rod in a manner to retain said tail portion in the deflected, looped configuration.
 5. A support device as defined in claim 4 and further characterized by said tail portion passing over and abutting an upper end of an associated fence rod, thereby to limit movement of said member downwardly along the associated fence rod.
 6. A support device as defined in claim 4 and further characterized by said body portion having a third slot formed therein and spaced outwardly of said second slot, said tail portion passing through said third slot before being passed through said second slot, and said body portion having an aperture disposed between said first and said second slots and sized to snugly receive a fence rod.
 7. A support device as defined in claim 4 and further characterized by said shoulders abutting the body portion on either side of said first slot when said body portion is deflected into a loop encircling an adjoining fence wire. 